During the past two months Wlsa Malawi has, in partnership with PLAN Malawi, been carrying out activities in Mulanje District whose objective is to end child marriages and have the legal age of marriage be 18 and above (as opposed to S22 (7) of the Constitution which allows persons between the ages of 15 and 18 years to marry however with parental/guardian consent).

Activities included a training of duty bearers (child protection officers, social welfare officers and the like) on child rights and the laws and child protection and safety measures. Another activity was the hosting of a youth consultative conference in which PLAN Malawi and WLSA Malawi sought to seek the opinions and experiences of the youth regarding the legal age of marriage and child marriages. The youth were full of stamina and gave some powerful insights on their current statuses across their varying socio-economic standings in society as regards legal age of marriage.
Field trips to T/A Nkanda and T/A Juma were also held where focus group discussions and interviews with parents and survivors revealed the challenges they face and the revelations highlighted the greater need for causes of child marriages to be addressed and the need for amending S22 at the earliest opportunity.
Below are a few images captured from the various activities.